Twombly's Plausibility Standard in Product Liability Cases
The <i>Twombly</i> decision significantly changed the accepted standard for a motion to dismiss from "no set of facts" to enough "plausible" facts. Now, to survive a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, a complaint must allege "enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face."
Defending Automobile Manufacturers in Design Defect Cases
Counsel defending manufacturers who are alleged to have designed defective vehicles that have caused serious traffic accidents often have an uphill battle in convincing jurors that the design of their client's vehicle was not wholly responsible. But it's not all bad news.
Can Failure-to-Warn Claims Against Generic Drug Manufacturers Be Preempted?
The tension between the salutary purposes of the Hatch-Waxman Act (low-cost drugs widely and quickly available to patients) and the necessity to change label warnings when science or adverse event reports show a newly appreciated risk, presents a Hobson's choice to generic drug companies, complicated by the FDA's own interpretation of its CBE regulations as inapplicable to them.
Boom, Boom, Boom
While it is helpful to be able to research issues online and communicate with key employees while sitting at the board table, I find that the level of distraction from the board's deliberations has diminished the value of these meetings, for me and for the company. While this problem is certainly not limited to e-commerce or technology firms, I think that the great reliance on such technology by their executives and directors makes the legal duty to "pay attention" even more of a pressing issue for such firms.
Who Should Monitor Online Counterfeiters?
Oral arguments will soon be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the highly watched dispute between renowned jeweler Tiffany & Co. and eBay, the popular online auction site, over who bears the burden of "policing" online counterfeit activity. Evidencing the tension between e-commerce and brand owners, eBay, Tiffany and several amici curiae have advanced their positions to the circuit. This article summarizes some of the arguments.
Trademark Protection in Cyberspace Rescued
A recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, <i>Rescuecom Corp. v. Google Inc.</i>, has clarified precedent that had been assumed to foreclose Lanham Act challenges to the surreptitious use of trademarks to compete in cyberspace. In the wake of <i>Rescuecom</i>, that interpretation has been rejected, and advertisers have a potent weapon to protect their trademarks against unfair competition on the Web.
